Computers,  although  a  great  asset  to  the  organization  and

          management of society today, are the center of many controversial

          issues.   One  such  issue  has  to  do  with   the  privacy  and

          accesibility  of  the  information  stored  in  various  computer

          systems.  Access to different types of information may be helpful





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          to  many  people, and society on the whole, but  when  access  is

          given  to  the wrong people or used for the  wrong  reasons,  the

          question of legality and morality is raised.  Also  raised is the

          question of whether  or  not  anyone  has the right to learn such

          information.  Computerized confidential information  is  used  in

          many fields of business.  Two large institutions  that  use  this

          type of information are the government and corporations.


            There are a few branches of government  that have many uses for

          personal information stored on  computers.  One branch especially

          dependent on computerized  information  is the F.B.I.  The F.B.I.

          has a relatively new, and rather advanced, computer system called

          the Organized Crime  Information  System  (O.C.I.S).  This system

                                                                  1K          has  greatly  helped  them  track  down  many criminals. .   This

          computer system contains a vast amount of personal information on

          many people.  It has been especially useful in the F.B.I.'s quest

          to track down members of organized crime families.  The  O.C.I.S.

          can spew out such information as which bars in  a  city  are  mob

          hangouts and who goes where.  It can list  mobsters phone numbers

          and liscence plate numbers, even when the  numbers  are  unlisted

          and the cars leased.  It can tell which  crime  members  hang out

          with which and whether they are believed to  be  just  friends or


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          1.   Hopper,Grace   Murray,  Mandell,Steven   L.,   Understanding
                                                              _____________
          Computers, St. Paul: West Publishing Co.:1984,p.  345
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                            2K          partners in crime.   This is an incredible amount of  information

          to  which  the F.B.I.  has access.  Their main data  base  is  at

          F.B.I.   headquarters  in Washington, D.C., but  terminals  reach

          into twenty-nine branch offices from New  York  to  Los  Angeles,

                                                   3K          making the information readily available.


            Another  branch   of  government  that  is  very  dependent  on

          computers for large amounts of information is the  IRS.  They use

          computers  to  find   out   private   information  about  peoples

          lifestyles.  Although their own data base, with profiles  of  all

          Americans, is still in the works, they  buy  outside  information

          and run it through computer systems  to see if they can catch any

          tax evaders.  One  example  is  their  purchasing  of  a  medical

          journal's subscription list.  They ran it through the computer to

                                                 4K          see  if  any doctors  forgot  to  file.   There  are  many  other

          possibilities, using this same basic idea, to learn about peoples

          lifestyles.  They could buy charge account lists from stores like

          Gucci or Tiffany's, and run the names of these people through the

          computer to see if their tax returns match  their  high  style of


K          ----------

          2. Kelly,O., "FBI's Secret  Weapon Against Mafia: Computers,"U.S.